Book2inspire has a reputation for publishing stories that spark inspiration, build emotional development, and encourage lifelong learning. Their commitment to quality content aligns perfectly with Pufli Agency, whose talented illustrators specialize in captivating visuals that engage young readers and support educational development. Together, they aim to help self-published authors produce books that are not only visually stunning but also meaningful and impactful.

Visit our bookstore to discover our latest titles and learn more about their mission. For a closer look at Pufli Agency’s illustration portfolio and creative process, head over to Pufli. We can’t wait to see how this partnership will shape the future of children’s literature!

It’s not cheap to publish.

Simply put, you will spend some money. How little and how much you spend depends on the quality of the product you want to put out or the form and fashion of your book. If you just want to do eBooks, then yes you can put out a lot of eBooks at little to no cost. Now if you want to do print books AKA hard covers or soft covers, you will spend some money. And if you want to do it the cheap way, then know that this will be reflected in how your product turns out. I have come across my fair share of self-published books with poor presentation such as kitchen paper quality or enough grammatical errors to make you question if they even bothered using an editor. I don’t believe in cutting corners with your book, especially the first one. I would suggest waiting until you have the money to publish (perhaps a few thousand set aside) before you even start the self-publishing process. Or at least the disposable income; whether you have a second job to fund your publishing endeavor or a high enough income to not feel the burn in your pocket. You can publish on a budget but understand that your readers will be able to tell.

You will need a team.

It may seem like an oxymoron, but you cannot self-publish by yourself. You will need to get together a team of independent contractors that will assist you, especially if it is for a children’s book where illustrations are involved. Trying to be your own team (editor, illustrator, book formatter, marketer) will cause you to miss the mark with some of these things. It is impossible to do them all well. It’s better to let another pair of eyes to look over your work and to delegate some of these responsibilities. Plus being a one-person team is tiring! You will burn yourself out before you even get to the finish line. This is why you need to see that publishing a book is an investment just like everything else in your life (house, car, degree, etc.) and that you must be willing to pony up the money if you want things done right.

You need to be flexible.

Even the best planners know that things don’t always happen as planned no matter how much you prepare. Self-publishing is not going to go the way you want or expect. Unfortunately, it is not a linear process. There will be bumps and bruises along the way and many detours. Deadlines might get delayed due to what might be going on with your contractors or you making mistakes that delay the progress. I would urge you to have at least two publishing deadlines rather than just one. That way you won’t be disappointed if you don’t meet one and can have the other one to look forward to. You also always want to remain on the contractors’ good side and not get into power struggles with them. Give them grace and keep them happy. This will prevent any further barriers in getting your book published.

Maintain a positive mindset.

This is by far the most important thing to remember when self-publishing. It can be easy to fall into the trap of becoming despondent or frustrated when the publishing process begins to drain your energy. We all have lives to live and people we care for and when things are not going your way with your book, it’s easy to throw in the towel and give up. Don’t allow some barriers or pitfalls to make you give up on your dream. Take a break and do something else to maintain your stamina but always go back to working on your book. There is nothing wrong with a re-set to replenish your energy because of the tedious process of self-publishing. I know all too well how it feels to be fed up with the process, but I also remember how happy I was when I made it to the finish line!

Do know that I’m here for you if you need me. I am a children’s book publishing coach not a writing coach which means that I only work with folks with finished manuscripts. I help you go from manuscript to market by teaching you about the self-publishing process. I also have an eBook coming out soon that will act as a guide to walk you through the steps to self-publishing success. I specialize in shelf ready books due to my keen eye and expertise as an author and mom to optimize your ability to get into bookshelves everywhere. Feel free to reach out to me here.

 See you soon,

Kira

Now if you don’t know, I have been providing coaching services for aspiring authors for about a year now. My coaching service teaches new authors how to self-publish, where to self-publish based on their unique needs, and how to reach their target market using social media. This has been a passion project for me since I love to help people reach their goals in general and wanted to assist someone in publishing their first book under their own name or company. In essence, I am helping folks become business owners and generate an additional stream of revenue. After my first experience in providing coaching, I realized how much went into it and that I had no choice but to increase my prices for my coaching packages because of my time investment.

Well, despite interest from many, I was not able to seal the deal with getting more clients. I think my prices discouraged folks interested in publishing because they didn’t have the financial means to do so. I felt quite discouraged about this but realized that with everything there is a solution. And I think I found one…

Introducing my new coaching service known as a-la-carte coaching. With this type of coaching you pay per session rather than a lump sum for a pre-determined amount of sessions upfront. It is no-commitment coaching. For example, if you change your mind about me and want to go with a different coach you can. You can also decide to defer the coaching and try to self-publish on your own or do more coaching at a later date. This type of coaching allows you to have more flexibility.

I think for someone who is budget conscious and doesn’t have a strict timeline to publish their first book, this is the perfect option! Now, there are two conditions you have to meet: 1) You have to have a complete manuscript 2) The manuscript must be for a children’s book. The reason is that the adult and children’s world of book publishing is vastly different and I am only knowledgeable about publishing a children’s book. Also, I don’t do writing coaching or ghostwriting. Eventually, I will be looking at adding ghostwriting to the services offered but I will be honest, the price point for this will be steep. Ghostwriting requires you to write in that person’s voice and then get paid for them to take the credit and that should receive appropriate compensation. For right now, I am going to stick to coaching and hope to bring on more coaching students under me and turn them into authors!

Here is what to expect with my a-la-carte coaching package:
Step 1: Review your draft together
Step 2: Review it with an editor
Step 3: Work through edit recommendations and finalize layout of book
Step 4: Find illustrator
Step 5: Work with illustrator on different images
Step 6: Determine where/how to publish
Step 7: Publish
Step 8: Marketing

 (This is subject to change depending on author’s work and how many revisions need to be made.)

A-la-carte coaching is one of four coaching services I offer. Be sure to go here and decide which option works best for you. You can also schedule a FREE 30-minute discovery call with me before you decide. This is a great way to discuss your book project and determine if we are a good fit before any money is exchanged. You can contact me by filling out a brief info form here and then we can discuss when a discovery call can happen.

I hope to see you soon. It excites me to bring more fantastic children’s book authors into the book industry. More stories need to be told from diverse authors from different walks of life!!! All stories deserve representation.

Warm regards,

Kira

Thank you Amanda for giving me the opportunity to interview you. How did you get into the business of branding and website design?

My husband Justin and I have both owned various businesses through the years.  He had always created our websites for us, and they always looked great and performed well. We then started having other business owners ask if we could help them. So, with my marketing/branding expertise and Justin’s design and copywriting expertise we decided to partner up and help other businesses grow.

If someone requests your business for branding and website design, what should they expect?

We really help guide and educate our on branding and messaging and what is needed to have a successful website. From there we have a streamlined process that helps our clients avoid stress and gives them an amazing website that will help them draw in more business.

I hope that you enjoyed the last installment of our People that Inspire series as much as I enjoyed doing it. There are so many talented folks out there and I know that my series only scratched the service. However, I do hope to do more interviews like this in the future but I will be charging for features such as this. 2023 is the year I plan to take Book2inspire to another level and I am not going to be as free with my time as I once was before. If you are interested in being featured to bring exposure to your business, feel free to reach out to me via my website by filling out our interest form.

Recently, you decided to also get into social media management and are receiving mentorship for it. What things are you learning during the mentorship process? Why do you feel mentorship is important?

I actually recently decided to step away from managing social media for others so that I could solely focus on branding and web design for our clients. However, I do feel mentorship is important in any business. We are all too close to our businesses and need fresh eyes and ideas from someone that has the experience and expertise.

For a business owner who is starting out on social media for the first time, is there a particular strategy you recommend? Are there certain platforms that are more user friendly?

There are many things to consider when answering this question. I highly recommend traditional networking when first getting started, which means focusing more on networking with other like-minded business owners, while also staying connected online through social media. You will want to be active on the platforms that your audiences are active on. This typically includes Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and even TikTok. Also, remember you DON’T have to be on ALL the platforms. Start with one, master it, and then move on to the next. Eventually, once you are making $10,000 or more per month in your business you will be ready to hire a social media manager that can really help you grow.

If you have a business or personal brand, why is a website so important vs. just relying on social media for customers?

You don’t own your social media accounts. You can be locked out at any time and they can be taken away from you. However, you do own your own website and email list. That’s why it’s so important to have a strong online presence and focus on growing an email list while growing your business.

How do you create a brand identity? What are common mistakes people make when doing this?

Creating a brand identity encompasses many facets. You want to understand your mission, your values, your brand personality, and of course your target audience. Your branding is about you, but it is also very much about your audience and what resonates with them. I see many business owners make the mistake of jumping to making a logo and choosing colors. That’s what they think branding is. However, branding is so much more than that. Branding is all about creating a feeling through images, words, color, and tone of voice.

I’ve heard of some small business owners hiring people to be the “face of the business” because they are too camera-shy. What do you think about this? Is this good business?

Yes, this is definitely a thing. Major corporations certainly do it.  As a small business owner, it can be done, but I generally feel that a small business’s potential customers would rather get to know the people behind the business. 

How important are collaborations in business and in what ways can collaborations help your personal brand or business?

Collaborating with other like minded business owners is really crucial and something most of us don’t do enough of. Think about it, if you work with other business owners that already have an audience and clients, you are being exposed to new audiences and potential clients. It also helps expose your clients and audiences to other aspects of business they may need help with. All in all, you are serving your audience and clients in a powerful way when you collaborate.

What are some parting words you would like to leave those who may be feeling frustrated or overwhelmed with not growing like they want on social media and thinking of exiting left? What free online resources are out there to help someone with branding and social media marketing?

Social Media Marketing can be so frustrating and the important thing to remember is you do not need a huge following in order to be successful and do well in your business. I recommend you be consistent, but do what you can. If you can post only 2 times a week, then do that. Focus on quality over quantity and remember to be yourself. People buy from people that they know, like, and trust. Remember that Social Media is really all about building relationships. There are so many free resources out there from podcasts, to YouTube Videos, to Instagram posts, and more. I highly recommend hiring a good social media strategist to help you. They can save you so much time, heartache, and stress. They will hone on what you need to do and where you need to do it, so you can be laser focused.

If someone wants to contact you about your services, how can they reach you?

https://connectwebdesignstudio.com

www.instagram.com/connectwebdesignstudio

www.facebook.com/amandakayweinraub

I hope that you enjoyed the last installment of our People that Inspire series as much as I enjoyed doing it. There are so many talented folks out there and I know that my series only scratched the service. However, I do hope to do more interviews like this in the future but I will be charging for features such as this. 2023 is the year I plan to take Book2inspire to another level and I am not going to be as free with my time as I once was before. If you are interested in being in a feature to bring exposure to your business, feel free to reach out to me via my website by filling out our interest form. I am more than happy to assist by having your business featured in my blog which can be a great opportunity to grow your brand.

In the meantime, stay tuned for future blogs regarding all things mental health and autism!

I promised this blog for a while now but to be honest, I had not had the urge to blog much recently. I just quit my part-time weekend job and have been enjoying the extra free time this summer. However, it was time I got back to writing and so I wanted to write about something that had been on my mind for a while. Matching your energy to the people around you. What do I mean by this? See…a lot of us (really most of us) don’t pay attention to those we surround ourselves with. We get so caught up in ‘being’ with other people but never truly pay attention to how they treat us. I saw a recent post where Serena was cheering on her opponent who had beat her but when Serena won and was in the spotlight, that same opponent was looking on with tears in her eyes. A lot of us are comfortable playing into the role of being a cheerleader for others but when it comes to being supported, it is always lacking when it is our turn.

Energy matching is matching the rhythm of how we communicate to those around us. It is kind of like the therapeutic version of mirroring but is intentional and occurs in your personal relationships. It allows for the recalibration of energy into people and things that pour into us. We are not always the first to text, call, or invite out. Instead, we move as quickly or as intensely as others around us do. It is a way of preserving ourselves for those who truly appreciate us and what we have to offer. It can be applied to friends, family, employers, and intimate relationships. I am a firm believer in self-preservation and I have seen personally and professionally a lot of people get tethered to the wrong people or situations and end up being wiped out by pouring into others that do not do the same in return.

Writing is not an easy feat, and neither is publishing. Publishing your first book can be super hard, even with the information highway at your fingertips. That is why it is important to have a guide through this process. Someone who can walk you through the land mines, pitfalls, missteps, etc. Someone who can help you save time, energy and most importantly, MONEY!

The reason mentorship is so big is that it is so vital to helping beginners entering a new field of interest shorten their learning curve and is a fast track to early success. Without mentorship, you are left fumbling in the dark, hoping you find the light on your own, while using your own unproven methods. But with a mentor by your side, you are a force to be reckoned with. You have someone who is an expert in your chosen area and that can show you the ropes. Someone who motivates you, who makes you feel comfortable taking this leap of faith. Because it is a leap doing something new, but it feels so much better having someone hold your hand while you embark on this journey.

You may have missed this, but I offered free coaching consultations for new and existing authors all this month. I enjoyed listening to different author’s story ideas and hearing their journey to moving towards their dream. Coaching packages will be available soon next month, and I hope that if you are a new or existing author, you allow me to help you on your journey to creating your first or best book yet!!!

Love and light,

Kira